Solidarity & Strength: March 10 - March 24 2021

Hi Teen Resisters,
​
These past weeks have had a lot of scary events. We hope that you are taking care of yourselves and staying safe.
We're focusing most of this list on resources related to the wave of anti-Asian hate sweeping the country right now, including the horrific shooting in Atlanta last week. We've linked a ton of resources for action, donations, etc., in different categories.

We also want to note the mass shooting in Boulder, CO this week. It occurred in the final stages of publishing this list, so we don't have extensive action yet, but we will link these pre-existing resources:

• Recent gun control legislation info & action in our last list
• Our feature on types of gun control legislation
• Fundraiser for the families of victims here

We're sending you love and light amid these difficult times and also reminding you that hope is truly on the horizon.
​
Peace and power,
TR

what went down

Hate Crimes Against Asian Americans
Throughout 2020 and 2021 there have been an increasing number of hate crimes perpetrated against Asian and Pacific Islander Americans. The most recent and devastating of these occurred in Atlanta, Georgia on March 16th, 2021. The shooter, Robert Aaron Long, targeted three spas. He killed eight people, six of whom were Asian women. Long was arrested March 17th and faces several charges including muder, aggravated assault, and use of a firearm while committing a felony. His stated motivations are directly linked to racist, xenophobic, and mysogynistic beliefs that lead him to target the spas. 

This hate crime is only one of close to 4,000 hate crimes and racist incidents targeted towards Asian Americans and specifically Asian women in the past year. This spike in incidents of racism towards Asian and Pacific Islander Americans is not solely due to the Covid 19 pandemic, and many cite multiple factors as contributing to the recent increase. Additional factors include the targeting of women and the elderly, and the perpetuation of stereotypes focusing on weakness. 

While both the President and Vice President have condemned the shootings, along with Long’s church, there is still so much more to be done on a broader scale. You can check in on those in your life who are affected anti-Asian racism and offer support, but never force someone to have a conversation they don’t want to have. Stop AAPI Hate is one of many organizations working to document and prevent anti-Asian racism. They have resources including reporting forms and safety tips available in multiple languages. They also have a Public Accommodation Law Survey document where you can check what protections exist in your state. The National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum has petitions along with educational resources as well. 

Action Items:

• This link from the National Asian Pacific Women’s Forum allows you to send your elected officials a letter conveying your demand for action to be taken about the rise in AAPI hate
• More petitions can be found on their action page here.
• @Stop_AsianHate is an Instagram similar to @justiceforgeorgenyc that posts rallies and vigils going on in NYC 
• Small business directory from Welcome to Chinatown
• This Twitter thread from Yan Kung

Resource hubs:

• This masterdoc by @sasponella and @minstantramen includes tons of resources: Carrds, orgs by state, mutual aid by state, small businesses, volunteering opportunities, and upcoming vigils & rallies
• This post includes places to help the AAPI community in NYC
• Poet Cleo Wade has made the homepage of her website a resource center for #StopAsianHate, including lots of articles, orgs, people, films, books, podcasts, mental health resources for the AAPI community, petitions, etc.
• Stop AAPI Hate has a place to report an incident, safety tips in multiple languages, and reports to read.
• This Anti-Asian Violence Resources Carrd has helpful info about stats, news updates, resources for education, allyship, donations, reporting incidences, mental health, petitions, and more.
• This post from WeChat includes lots of organizations, safety initiatives, and more

Organizations to donate to and get involved with:

• Red Canary Song is a grassroots collective of Asian and migrant sex workers that works in labor rights and mutual aid.
• Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance
• Protect Chinatown  (Venmo @ProtectChinatown)
• The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund
• Heart of Dinner

• Asian Americans Advancing Justice Atlanta
• This GoFundMe fundraiser will be divided amongst AAPI organizations
• This list of places to donate from New York Magazine
• Chinese-American Planning Council NYC
• CAAAV
• MinKwon Center for Community Action
• Chinatown Youth Initiatives
• Asian American Writers’ Workshop​

​Murder of Sarah Everard and Violence Against Women 
Over the past weeks, global outrage surrounding the safety of women and girls and the role of policing in gender-based violence has emerged following a tragedy in London. On March 3, Sarah Everard went missing after leaving a friend’s house. On March 12, her remains were confirmed to be discovered and a police officer was charged with her kidnapping and murder. Everard’s death prompted a series of protests against the violence happening against women and girls in London, across the U.K., and throughout the globe. After one of these peaceful protests was interrupted by police and protestors were arrested, the outcry from the public has intensified even more.

Over 70% of women in the UK have experienced street harassment in public. As a part of the protests across London, women have spoken out and shared stories of their harassment, igniting conversations about the lack of protections for women and girls. (After Everard’s death, hundreds of thousands of women downloaded safety apps; even more have taken to social media to share safety tips.) 

Amidst everything, the government has introduced a crime bill, the sweeping Police, Crime, Sentencing and Court Bill, which would give police significantly more power in their response to nonviolent protests and demonstrations. Yet this approach is exactly the opposite of what lead activists in London are looking for. As evidenced by Everard’s murder, police can be and often are perpetrators of violence against women. Many women don’t feel any safer — or even feel less safe — while in the presence of police. Considering this newly sparked cultural firestorm, there has been significant pushback against the government’s solution of increasing police power. 

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

• Check out this article and follow the six organizations listed, who are leading this effort in London.
• Check out these videos on the #KillTheBill movement against the Crime Bill
• Donate to Sisters Uncut to support their efforts in demanding an end to harassment and violence against women
• ​Many of the alternative solutions Sisters Uncut advocates for are resources and programs that support women, such as women's shelters and sex education campaigns. 
  • Check out our 2018 International Women's Day feature for a list of organizations to support along these lines, including Women in Need, the largest provider of shelter and housing for women in NYC. 
• Call your senators to tell them to pass H.R.1620, the Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization Act of 2021, received in the Senate on March 18.
  • Script: Hi, my name is ______, I’m from _____, and I'm calling to ask you to push for and vote yes on the Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization Act of 2021, H.R. 1620. Especially given a recent global reckoning surrounding gender-based violence sparked by the murder of Sarah Everard in London, I believe that this legislation is a vital step to fighting some of the terror that women must deal with every day, whether on the street or in their own houses. I urge you to use your conscience in making your decisions on this topic. Thank you.

This list was written by Leo Levine, Sonia Chajet Wides, Hailey Dickinson, and Kate Griem, with org contributions from Nicole Kim.

And, before you go....

Puppy Vid!